Cranberries for beauty and health

First, it is widely known that cranberriesÂ are chock full of antioxidants that eliminate free radicals in the body reducing the risk of cellular damage.Â Theyâ€™ve also been shown to prevent plaque formation on teeth and kill H. pylori bacteria, which can cause stomach cancers and ulcers.

And according to experts at the National Institutes of Health, cranberries have been shown to prevent urinary tract infections (UTIs) in women.Â

Cranberries have long been known to ward off urinary tract infections (UTIs) due to unique compounds in the fruit called proanthocyanidins, or PACS. PACS offer an anti-adhesion mechanism that prevents harmful E. coli bacteria from adhering to the urinary tract wall. Cranberries may be a useful tool for helping women to maintain a healthy urinary tract, naturally.

The good news is that cranberry research supports not only the reduction of recurrent UTIs by half, but now a new study suggests cranberry compounds may help prevent recurrent UTIs for as long as two years.

There are a variety of ways to get the cranberry’s benefits.Â Apart from fresh or frozen cranberries, you take takeÂ cranberry juice cocktail, dried cranberries, or cranberry sauce. In addition, while cranberry packs a nutritious punch, drinking one 8-ounce serving of any of the premium 100% juices, or eating 1/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries counts as half your daily requirements for fruit.

I don’t know about you but I’m certainly going to load up more cranberries in my diet.Â If you’ve ever had urinary tract infection before, you’ll understand why prevention is definitely better than cure in this case.